I'm a personal finance expert that focuses on helping millennials get out of student loan debt and start investing for their future. I also help parents make smart choices about college financing options and navigating the complex world of paying for school. I started The College Investor in 2009 as a forum to discuss the myriad of financial issues facing young adults. I majored in Political Science at UC San Diego, and received my MBA from the Rady School of Management at UC San Diego.
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Is Your Student Loan Servicer Ruining Your Credit?

There are a few ways that you can protect yourself as a student loan borrower.

Know Where Your Loans Are: First, you should always know where your student loans are. You can access the National Student Loan Data System, which is maintained by the Department of Education, to look up where you student loans are. You can enter your Social Security number, birthday, and other information to pull up any student loans that are in your name. That way you can check to make sure that everything is correct.

Check Your Credit: You should also make sure that you know your credit score and check your credit report annually. You can use free services like Credit Karma to pull up your credit score, and you can use their tools to help fix any issues. You can also pull up your credit report annually using the site: AnnualCreditReport.com. That is the only site authorized by the Federal government to let you access your credit report for free each year.

Contact Your Student Loan Servicer: If there are issues on your credit report, you need to contact your student loan servicing company. Here’s a list of all the major student loan servicing companies. If you have a private student loan, you need to contact the lender.

Contact the Department of Education Ombudsman: Finally, if you’re unable to resolve the issue directly with your lender, you can contact the Department of Education’s Student Loan Ombudsman. This group is is dedicated to helping resolve disputes related to Direct Loans, Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFEL) loans, Guaranteed Student Loans, and Perkins Loans. The Ombudsman Group is a neutral, informal, and confidential resource to help resolve disputes about your federal student loans.

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